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1960s
– Increased water flows in the Wash accelerate erosional processes;
wetlands decline; community comes together to discuss issues
By 1960, wastewater flows
in the Wash had increased to just less than 10 mgd (15 cfs) and the Valley's population
had grown to approximately 119,000 people. Urban coverage (i.e., developed land)
in the Valley was approximately 22,000 acres in 1960.
Growth of wetland vegetation in the
Wash, promoted by wastewater discharge from the Valley, was unable to keep pace with the rate of
wastewater increases. Although there was enough surface water in the mid-1960's to provide marsh
habitat for birds, most excess water not used by the vegetation began to erode the fragile floodplain
underlain by unconsolidated, fine-grained sediments.
In July 1968, the first
community-wide effort to solve Las Vegas Bay pollution problems was initiated. The Interagency
Water Pollution Control Task Force was formed and acted as a Technical Advisory Committee to
the Clark County Board of Commissioners. A year later, in 1969, erosion became visually evident
when daily average flow in the Wash was about 24 mgd (37 cfs). Two sites, where Three Kids Wash
enters the Wash, and where the Northshore Road crosses the Wash, displayed channels that cut through
marsh habitats and erosional headcutting at the downstream ends of road culverts. Lateral confinement
of stream flow by the culverts caused flow velocities to increase proportionally.
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